Movie star alligator passes away in Colorado
Morris, a 640 pound alligator believed to be more than 80 years old and the source of an impressive list of movie and TV credits, passed away last week at the Colorado Gator Farm in southern Colorado.
Farm owner and operator Jay Young announced Morris's death in a social media post Sunday. Young sat on the side of an enclosure's pool, stroking the deceased's animal head and tearfully expressing his grief.
"He started acting strange a week ago. He wasn't looking at us and wasn't taking food," Young said in the Facebook video. "I know it's strange to people ... that we get so attached to an alligator. To all our animals; we love our cats and dogs, too," he added with a chuckle.
Morris was best known for an appearance in the 1996 film "Happy Gilmore." But he also "starred" -- in Young's words -- in "Alligator 1," "Alligator 2," "Interview with a Vampire," "Dr. Doolittle 2," "Eraser," "Blues Brothers 2000," and other films. Morris also had air time on television shows such as "Coach," "Night Court" and "Jay Leno" - the latter as alongside conservationist and wildlife advocate Steve Irwin.
Adam Sandler, the star and co-writer of Happy Gilmore, posted a funny, yet heartfelt memorial to Morris on his X account on Wednesday.
"Goodbye, Morris. We are all gonna miss you. You could be hard on directors, make-up artists, costumers - really anyone with arms or legs - but I know you did it for the ultimate good of the film," Sandler wrote, in part. "The day you wouldn't come out of your trailer unless we sent in 40 heads of lettuce taught me a powerful lesson: never compromise your art."
Morris worked in films and television from 1975 to 2006, according to Young. Then he "retired" to Colorado Gator Farm north of Alamosa.
"It's the worst part of what we do, losing animals," Young said. "But this isn't as tragic as some of the things we've experienced in the past. He had a happy time here, and he died of old age, and it's not as tragic as some of the family members we've lost here. But that's part of life. Everything that lives must die."
The farm started operations in 1977 as a fish producer. Erwin and Lynne Young (Jay's parents) purchased the property and started raising tilapia and African perch. A geothermal well on the site naturally maintains the water temperature at 87 degrees, which suits the warm-water species in the colder Colorado environment. The farm is a sort of tropical oasis at all times of the year.
As the business grew, the Youngs wrestled with the logistics of large amounts of fish waste (unused body parts, essentially) produced during harvest and processing.
They came at the problem in a novel way and acquired their first alligator 10 years after start-up. The new addition became quickly popular, and the Youngs added other alligators, often from rescue situations where the animals outgrew their owners' housing.
A reptile park was later added to enhance the farm's educational approach for smaller creatures -- baby crocs, snakes, lizards, turtles and tortoises. The facility was destroyed in a fire in 2023 and all the animals perished. It was rebuilt and re-opened last year.
The farm is open year-round, is ADA accessible, and charges $15 per adult. However, as jokingly stated on the farm's voicemail, "bite-sized" children are admitted at no charge.
In an update on Monday, the attraction announced "We have decided to get Morris taxidermied so that he can continue to scare children for years to come."
"It's what he would have wanted," a Facebook post stated.
